Delhi Diary 3

Back again to the topic of temperatures soaring… It is a humane gesture to fill bowls of water and keep them out in the balconies or terraces so that the birds could drop by and cool themselves. At my house, both the pigeons and the squirrels who satisfy themselves.

The heat is catching on perversely. During this week, I witnessed two cars totally burnt out. I suppose these happen if you have a short circuit or an LPG cylinder installed. Be careful, guys.

Water is getting scarce in the capital. My maid is now on the lookout to buy a pump to pull out water since every household in her area possesses one and there is no way she can draw water from taps in her house normally. New schemes have to be thought out to prevent the water levels from going further down. Doomsday has to be kept at bay!

The rains finally came on 29 April and what a display! All hailstone and water and wind whipped together to present a cooling mocktail to the environs of Delhi.

The Heat is On!!! Delhi Diary 2

Temperatures are soaring in the Capital. It has crossed the 42 degree mark already and this is only April! The last time this happened was eight years ago! But hey! How then do we account for the rise today? Is it not due to global warming? I hope not, sincerely. This extreme heat also brings with it a sense of gloom – what does lie ahead? I can almost see myself roasted in the heat and it is not just me…So why not harness this terrible heat through solar batteries and utilize it to run some more ceiling fans or coolers. Yes, fans and coolers, mind you and not ACs. Aaaah, for a glass of cool water...

Delhi Diary 1

I am starting with this new column which I shall be updating almost every day. At least will try to. I’m calling it Delhi Diary coz there is a lot to observe in this madness of a city.

I am on the roads of the capital four days a week. Going to office at around 11 am and returning around 6 pm. Now, the returning time is ok as far as the outside temperature goes. But while going to office, I am baked slowly but surely in the auto rickshaw for an hour.

The road from Mahipalpur till the end of Vasant Kunj is a nightmare. Cars, buses, two wheelers, people, shops, everything to negotiate. Not to forget the noise that break sound barriers and the stench that makes me wish for my cologne bottle.

The flyovers on outer Ring Road which I negotiate at times, while returning home, serve little purpose in reducing traffic snarls. The more space created, the more the number of vehicles. (He got two cars, why should I not have three? is the philosophy here.)

So, I was on the outer ring road the other day when I saw a cow with a bloated stomach lying dead on one side of the road – at the Rao Tula Ram crossing. Must have consumed plastic, trying to fend fro lunch coz where is the grass??? Tree covers are coming up, but green pastures are a thing of the past now. And if we cannot provide their fodder, why do these bovine beauties loiter among the i10s, Accords and Mercs?? If not food, the smoke will most certainly kill them.

The Commonwealth Games has given us the dream of a cleaner developed city. Well, the way things are going, doesn’t seem like it. Hopefully, there will be games held here. But will the venues be ready? Already there is talk that school students will attend classes till the end of May so that they can have an extended autumn break during the Commonwealth games. Tell me, is this humane? Already temperatures are soaring to 41 degrees now. God bless the thoughtful Government.